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Following Harvard Faculty vote, STM publishers clarify position: debate continues over open-access journal publishing

Information Outlook, April, 2008

It wasn't long after the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences voted to give the university a worldwide license to make scholarly articles by faculty members available in a university-hosted, open-access repository that STM, the International Association of Scientific, Technical, and Medical Publishers, issued a statement criticizing the action.

"The debate on the rights that authors have (or indeed it is claimed inaccurately, do not have) over their published works continues to rage, and much coverage has been given to purportedly restrictive practices or policies, when in fact they do not exist for the majority of publishers," STM said in a press release.

In an article in the Harvard University Gazette Online, Professor Stuart M. Shieber, was quoted as saying, "There is no question that scholarly journals have historically allowed scholars to distribute their research to audiences around the world. But, the scholarly publishing system has become far more restrictive than it need be. Many publishers will not even allow scholars to use and distribute their own work. And, the cost of journals has risen to such astronomical levels that many institutions and individuals have cancelled subscriptions, further reducing the circulation of scholars' works."

STM's press release referred to Shieber's comment, asserting it is an "inaccurate perception of the role of publishers and copyright." The STM release added "that advocating authors to modify existing journal publishing agreements with 'copyright addenda' is simply a call for needless bureaucracy."

STM posted online a "Statement on Journal Publishing Agreements and Copyright 'Addenda.'" (See www.stmassoc.org/documents-statements-public-co/2008.3 STM-PSP-ALPSP%.)

Announcing the statement, STM said, "STM publishers invariably allow the authors of journal articles to use their published papers in their own teaching and for educational purposes generally within their institutions. Most journals have policies that permit authors to provide copies of their papers to research colleagues, and to re-use portions of their papers in further works or books."

The Harvard article noted that faculty members may request waivers of the license "for particular articles where this is preferable" and added that the new policy does not cover articles written before its adoption.

The full Harvard article is online at www.news.harvard.edu/gazette/2008/02.14/99-fasvote.html.>